Her king
by thegirlofmanymoods
Summary: They might not always see eye to eye, but in the end they always come through for each other. Collection of one-shots.
1. Chapter 1

"It's tomorrow!" Sakura exclaimed, pumping her fist into the air.

Ino laughed at her friend's antics. "I've never seen you this excited for a mission before."

That was probably true. Sakura was going to go on a mission with Team Gai as Tenten's replacement with her boyfriend, Neji, as her captain. They were going to a secret base for a large group of missing nins to save a Leaf civilian that had been captured by them. It was rumored that the civilian was quite handsome and had quite the female fan base. However, that what wasn't why she was eager to depart on the mission.

In truth, she was looking forward to it for a few reasons. The first being that she hadn't been on a mission in four months. Those four months had been spent working tirelessly in the hospital. While the girl didn't usually mind the hospital, being in it for so long was starting to make her sick of the place. This mission would be a nice break from the building. Besides, Sakura was a medic, but she was also a ninja, and she was looking forward to acting like one again.

Also, Sakura had never to the area that the base was located before. She was told that it was located close to a small village and that the village, and the landscape surrounding the village, was beautiful. It was filled with a variety of wildflowers and the village was apparently famous for its vast and gorgeous gardens. They also had quite a few strawberry fields, which just happened to be one of Sakura's favourite foods. If she was lucky, maybe before they left she could go and have some.

It was a combination of these things that made Sakura so excited.

"Make sure you bring me back some of the wildflowers ok?" Ino asked as they walked. "They would be a great addition to the flower shop."

"Will do," Sakura promised as they neared their destination. The two were meeting the rest of the Konoha 11 at a small restaurant for lunch.

"Oh, and tell me about that hot civilian when you're done too," Ino's eyes flashed with excitement and glee.

Sakura laughed. "Ok In-ow." She hissed and clenched her stomach as the area flooded with pain. But as soon as the hurt came, it left.

Ino's expression quickly changed to one of concern. "Are you ok?"

The medic nodded. She had these random pains for about two weeks now. A day before that she had been helping a team of medics deal with a mild poison. A small dose of said poison was in a needle, ready to be taken in for research. This normally would not be of any trouble but a new, clumsy medic had taken hold of the needle and had accidently tripped, causing the medic to fly in Sakura and the needle to enter in the pinkette's arm. She was pretty sure that these pains were a side effect of the poison. Thankfully, since that time she had been taking an antidote and the pains went from occurring twice an hour to twice a day to once every second day. And Sakura was pretty confident that today was the last day that she would have them.

By that point they were at the eatery. "Hey everyone," Ino greeted as the two sat down. Sakura gave a wink to Neji who was sitting across the table. He nodded at her in reply.

"Sakura, are you ready for the mission tomorrow?" Lee asked.

"Mhmm," Sakura nodded eagerly, already knowing the answer, she added. "Are you?"

"Indeed I am," Lee replied with his usual determination. "I will try my hardest to make sure that our mission is a success, and with you on our team, we are guaranteed not to fail!"

"Sakura won't be going," Neji announced, sipping his tea casually.

Say what now? "What?" Sakura and Lee both shouted.

Neji put down his tea and glanced up at them. "Sakura will not be going with us on the mission."

Sakura felt disappointment and disbelief consume her. Not going? Why not? The mission had been her main source of joy for the past week, and now she wasn't going on it.

Upon seeing her expression, Naruto was quick to come to her defense. "Why the hell not?"

"I went to Tsunade this morning and convinced her to take her off of it," Neji explained calmly.

The pinkette's jaw dropped. Neji did this? How could he? He knew how much she was looking forward to this. Heck, just last night they were talking about it in her apartment. How dare he do something like this behind her back! "What is wrong with you? You asshole!" Sakura spat out.

Not waiting to hear the response, Sakura stood up and walked away without another word. How could he do this to her? What reason could he possibly have for not wanting her on the mission? Was it something personal? No, Neji wasn't the type to let his personal feelings get in the way of a mission…at least she thought he wasn't.

She marched into her home, slamming the door after she entered. Afterwards she marched towards the first throw pillow she had and screamed into it. That bastard. The worst part of it was that Neji was her boyfriend. If he was just another member of Konoha 11, it would be different. His decision would be more impersonal. And sure, she would still be pissed at him for it, but at least she would be able to properly avoid him afterwards until she had time to calm down and sort things out. The fact that she was dating him prevented her from doing so.

"Sakura." Speak of the devil, it was Neji. Apparently he was above knocking now.

"What?" She snapped at him, turning so that she could deliver a cold glare to him.

While she appeared to be furious, his expression was calm as he shut her door. "That was quite the episode you made at the restaurant."

Why that ass. He sounded like he was scolding her. As if she had done something wrong! Without giving it a second thought, she picked up the throw pillow and chucked it at him. He avoided it easily.

"Why?" She asked him. "Why would you do that? You knew how excited I was for this. You didn't even hint at anything last night!"

"I was unsure about my decision until I left you last night. I had just discussed the matter with Tsunade this morning and because of this, I was unable to let you know until a few minutes ago," Neji told her as he walked into her home.

"Oh really? And you never thought to talk to me about this?" Sakura demanded to know, her glare still present.

"There wasn't time."

"Really?" She stated, clearly unconvinced. "So what prompted you to make this decision?"

"There were a few reasons," he explained, still as calm as ever as he moved towards her.

"Such as?"

"For one," he explained, suddenly coming to a halt when he was directly in front of her. "You were too focused on side attractions such as the scenery and not on the mission itself."

Her fists clenched. Who did he think she was, Naruto? She had self-control dammit! "That's bull and you know it. Yes, those things are exciting to me. But I wouldn't let them get in the way of the mission and you know that."

"Will you let me finish?" Neji asked, annoyance finally showing on his features. Sakura's glare intensified, but the Hyuuga continued. "Another reason was because of your current chest pains."

Suddenly she regretted ever talking to him about them. She had mentioned them casually to him last week. He had been concerned, but she had explained to him that she had been taking the antidote and the pains were calming down considerably. And now he was using the conversation against her. She couldn't help but feel violated by his actions. "I told you that in private!"

"So I'm just supposed to ignore it?" His voice was beginning to rise in volume. "I'm not going to pretend that I don't know that you're hurt just because I wasn't your captain when you told me it. You would be endangering both yourself and possibly others on the mission if you had one of your pains while we are in the base."

"I told you before that they are lessening. They barely even happen now." That was the last time she told him anything about any injuries or sickness she had.

"Barely still means that they still happen." Neji insisted. "And I'm not going to risk-"

"You're not the one who would be risking something!" She retorted. "I would, and I'm fine with taking the risk."

"I'm not," he stated. "As a captain, the wellbeing of my team is important to me. I'm not going to send someone in knowing that they're suffering from the after effects of a poison."

She had to admit that he did have a _small _point there. However, one thing didn't make sense to her. Tsunade knew about the poison and its effects when assigning Sakura to the team. And she knew much more about the poison than Neji did. So Neji wouldn't have been able to convince Tsunade with just the poison and her excitement as an argument. There must have been something else. "What is the other reason?" Sakura wanted to know.

Neji tried to mentally prepare himself for her reaction. He knew that she wasn't going to like this. "Your current abilities do not coincide with the demands of the mission."

There it was. The real reason why he didn't want her to come on the mission. Her fists tightened even more and she began to see red. "Excuse me? So I'm too weak to go on the mission?"

"I didn't say that!" By that point he was starting to yell too. Very few people had seen him like this, so full of emotion. She used to secretly take pride in the fact that she had seen his emotional side. But now, she just didn't care.

"Well you implied it!" The pinkette raged. How dare he! He knew that she was really sensitive about being called weak.

"Would you let me finish?" Neji shouted.

"No!" Sakura yelled. "I am not too weak for this mission!" Even though now she wouldn't be able to show him. Tsunade likely already got a replacement for her. "Thanks for you lack of faith in me you dickwad!"

He thought she was weak and had convinced Tsunade as such. This had cost her the mission. There was nothing she could do about that right now. And that only added to her frustration. She hated feeling helpless, like she couldn't do anything and everything was out of her control.

Well, there was one thing she had control over right now…"Maybe I think that your abilities don't coincide with the demands of our relationship."

His eyes widened, but she didn't give him an opportunity to speak. "Get out of my house now!"

At first he didn't move and Sakura thought that he was going to leave. But then he started to move and he left her home without another word.

With him gone, Sakura retreated into her room and screamed into a pillow there. She knew that she was being a tad bit unreasonable, but he deserved it.

She was not weak! She was no longer the powerless weakling she used to be, and she was determined to stay that way. It was why she spent at least two hours a day training, even if she had to pull a twelve hour shift at the hospital that day. It was why she was now a jounin. And it was why she had asked Tsunade to be her mentor in the first place. She was strong now, but apparently not enough for Neji's standards.

Her gaze traveled to an old story book she had read quite frequently when she was a child. Usually she didn't keep such mementoes, but it had been a favourite of hers. It was a cliché tale about a princess. After reading the book the pink haired child would always fantasize about being a princess, and if she was one, eventually becoming a queen. At the time, she was convinced that her king would be Sasuke. But, now that she thought about it, who would she want as her king now? Neji? Ha, yeah right. He wouldn't want a burden such as her as his queen.

Really, what did she see in that guy anyway? Sure, he usually seemed polite and calm to most people. But he could be crude, judgmental and, like he had just displayed, heartless. She really needed to stop going for this type of men. For now, she'd just stick to giving Neji the silent treatment.

She sighed and got up from her bed. Well, since she wasn't going to spend the night preparing for the mission, she might as well do her usual time waster when she was feeling down: watch some sappy romantic comedies while pigging out on ice cream.

* * *

Sakura had a small smile on her face as the credits rolled on the tv and the stars shone brightly in the window behind it. These movies always did make her feel a little better. Even if they were totally bogus. Love was never that easy, she should know.

Just then she heard a knocking at her door before it opened and a figure emerged. "Sakura."

And her anger was back again. "Neji," she grounded out.

Neji sighed inwardly. He had thought that if he waited for her anger to subside, she would be more willing to hear him out. He had been incorrect as the sight of him seemed to provoke her anger. Well then, he would have to try a different tactic. Neji began to move.

Sakura looked with confusion as her boyfriend suddenly rushed forward. "Neji, what are you-mmph" She was cut off when Neji's lips descend upon hers.

The pinkette was filled with shock. What the heck? Sure, she and Neji had kissed many times before, but it was never this random. What was going on? She pulled away. "Nej-"

His lips were sealed to hers once more. His arms wrapped around her, drawing her to him. Slowly, she began to respond to the kiss. While she had been determined before to not talk to him in order for him to have justice for what he did, she felt her drive for this slip away. This kiss seemed different than others he had given her. Usually they were sweet and gentle. This one had more pressure to it, it felt more determined. But it still felt, and tasted, like him.

She closed her eyes and returned the kiss and his grip on her tightened. Her arms found their usual position around his neck. It almost felt like nothing had changed between them.

"Sakura," he breathed, breaking the kiss. Her eyes opened and she looked at him. He was bathed in moonlight coming from her window. It made his eyes look almost luminous, and definitely made him look breathtaking. He moved forward so that their foreheads were touching, never once taking his gaze away from her eyes.

"About what I said earlier," he explained softly. "I didn't mean that you're weak, I don't think of you that way. I meant that your abilities don't match the mission."

"Huh?" She asked, still slightly dazed from their kiss.

"While a medic is always useful on a mission, your other abilities are not ideal for this particular mission. We need to sneak in, get the man, and get out. Your strength is not exactly something that can be used quietly. It would draw a lot of unnecessary attention, and since our goal is not to engage the enemy in combat, that's not something we should risk."

Ahh, she understood. She felt heat rise to her cheeks as she realized her mistake. "Well thank you for letting me know."

He gave her a small smile. "You're welcome." With that, he released her, or at least partially. An arm still remained around her waist. "Come on, I want to take you somewhere."

"What?" Well, sure the sun had gone down, but it wasn't late enough for everything to be closed yet. "Oh, well ok."

They walked side by side out of her home and onto the now quiet streets of Konoha. She looked over at him curiously. "So where exactly are we going?"

"You will see when we get there," he answered. Although his face had returned to its usual emotionless look there was slight amusement evident in his eyes.

Sakura looked up at the night sky. It was calm tonight, and for that she was grateful. She was not the biggest fan of storms, especiallly when they had thunder.

She contemplated trying to figure out where he was taking her on her own, but decided to let herself be surprised. So she nodded and allowed him to lead her to their destination.

After about five minutes they stopped at a food stand. "We're here," Neji told her.

She looked at the stand. It was unfamiliar. "I've never been here before," she announced.

"I haven't either," he looked at her and offered a small smile. "I know that you were excited to visit someplace new. I'm aware that this is barely comparable to that other village, but it's better than nothing. Plus, I heard that they use strawberries in many of their recipes."

She couldn't help but let her lips spread into a smile at his consideration. "Thank you." She wasn't completely over him taking her off the team, especially since he hadn't discussed it with her first, but it was nice of him to try and compensate for her. Besides, it was really hard to stay angry at this guy, especially when he kissed her like that.

Still though, it was strange how he took her off the team for her strength being too loud when he had Lee and Gai on his team. "Hey Neji," she started as they walked in the stand.

"Yes?" He asked, raising an eyebrow.

They sat down. "I get why you took me off. But what doesn't make sense to me is that you still have Gai and Lee on your team. And while they're both great assets, they're not exactly quiet people. Especially when they're talking about 'the flower of youth'."

Neji visibly grimaced. "Don't remind me." Sakura laughed at his reaction. It was obvious that he cared for his team mates, but that didn't mean that he agreed with most of their ideals.

The remainder of their date went by nicely. Sakura got a strawberry desert and, after some convincing on her part, he got one too. Although his enjoyment of the sweet was considerably less than hers. After she finished her treat she stood up. "Well," she began. "It's been fun, but I should probably go to bed. Since I'm apparently going back to the hospital tomorrow I need to get up early."

"Wait," he reached out and caught her arm.

"Oh?" Sakura asked curiously.

"You don't have to go to the hospital tomorrow," he explained. "When I talked to Tsunade I convinced her to give you the days you would have used on the mission off. You're officially on vacation."

Once again, she couldn't help but smile. Yes, her boyfriend could be crude, judgmental and heartless. But he could also be kind and considerate. And she felt blessed to be able to witness it first-hand.

Yes, now that she thought about it, she wouldn't mind having Neji as her king after all.

* * *

**Hey everyone, I hope everyone enjoyed reading this. I just wanted to clarify a point in this fic. Sakura (and Neji), believed that their relationship and their lives as shinobi should be kept seperate. So when Sakura told Neji about her stomach pains, she didn't expect him to use the information when acting as her captain. **


	2. How they became a couple

**Hey everyone. This is the product of my study breaks. I decided to start putting the SakuNeji oneshots (that are not AU) that I make in one place instead of posting up each one separately. Who knows, maybe it will start to follow an actual story line :P**

**Anywho, I hope you all enjoy this and I would really appreciate it if you gave a review. Thanks :)  
**

* * *

"Arg!" Ino exclaimed as she walked into Sakura's office in the hospital.

Sakura didn't look up from her desk; instead she chose to stare down at some paperwork that she was working on. "Hello to you to Ino." She wasn't expecting Ino to come in; something must have happened. She wondered what had caused that outburst. Ino only made entrances like that when a mission didn't go over well, she was forced to do extra shifts at the flower shop, or something bad was happening to her romantically.

"I cannot believe him," Ino declared.

Ok, so it wasn't the second option, that left the first and last. "Who?" The pinkette asked, internally bracing herself as she did so. If Ino was complaining about a guy, they could be here for a while, possibly even after Neji came to pick her up for her date.

"Sai," Ino cried out. "Seriously, he has not asked me out yet! I have dropped so many hints that I'm interested and want to date him, but he still hasn't said a word about it! I don't know who to be more mad at, him for not doing anything, or me for falling for such a dense man."

So it was the last option, why was she not surprised? Ino's love life seemed akin to a roller coaster ride, with ups and downs and twists at every turn. And she got to hear every single little detail over it. At the moment, Ino was infatuated with Sai. Actually, the medic believed that Ino had really liked him for a while now and just tried to hide it.

"Well," she spoke up, finally looking up from her papers. "You could always ask him out."

Ino tilted her head and pondered this for a moment before shrugging. "I guess I could. But I don't know, I'd like to be asked."

"Then you're going to have to wait until he asks you," Sakura told her in a sing-song voice.

"But I really don't want to," Ino groaned as she grabbed her hair. "How long did it take Neji to ask you again?"

"He didn't," Sakura explained. "It was more along the lines of me asking him."

"Really?" Ino asked as her eyes widened a little. "I guess that makes sense, considering how he acts. Come to think of it, I don't know the story of how you two got together."

"That's because when we started dating you had just broke up with that civilian guy and were too busy crying over him to want to hear me talk about my relationship," she explained.

Ino laughed a little. "Really?" The blonde bounded over to the desk and leaned down so her head was level with Sakura's. "Well I'm not sad anymore, so spill."

Sakura smiled a little as she started to talk, her papers officially forgotten. "Well, it all started on a mission…"

* * *

It took Sakura a lot of self-control not to groan or let any other signs of displeasure show on her face. This mission was taking forever! It had sounded simple at first; save an old man from a group of rouge ninjas. Her team and Team Gai were sent on it, and because of that she had hoped that it wouldn't take too much time. How wrong she had been.

As it turned out, the group was quite large and more skilled than they had originally let on. Due to this fact, it had taken a lot longer than expected to complete their task. Usually Sakura didn't care about how long a mission was, but she was getting a week off right after the assignment and she was really looking forward to the break.

What was also quite frustrating was the old man. Not only was he walking at an extremely slow pace, but he kept rambling on and on about subjects like how there were too many ninja and his opinion on the history of the last 500 years.

She was currently walking with the old man and Neji, who she suspected was just as annoyed as she was, not that he showed it. The others had dispersed, claiming that they were looking around to see if there were any other rouge nins. They had probably just wanted an excuse to leave. Her and Neji were stuck escorting the man back to his village because Sakura would be able to heal the man in case another attack happened and Neji was able to detect any possible threats with his Byakugan. Personally she didn't understand why anyone in their right mind would kidnap the guy, even if he was the chief to his small village.

Her eyes moved to Neji. Since she doubted that he was unaffected by the old man's banter, maybe she should go over to him and attempt to lighten the mood a little.

She walked over to him and whispered jokingly, "Do you think he'll notice if we put in earplugs?"

He didn't say anything, but a corner of his mouth tilted up.

The village suddenly came into view and Sakura felt her spirit leap a little. Finally! Week long break here she comes!

When they reached the entrance the man stopped and turned around to face them. "Thank you for rescuing me and putting up with my rambles."

Hearing him acknowledge them almost made the pinkette feel a tad guilty for being so irritated with them. "It was no problem," she told him quickly.

"Well, I'll be heading off now," he turned to leave. But then he turned back quickly, "Oh, by the way, you two make a great couple."

Sakura froze as a blush immediately formed on her cheeks. She was not expecting that. Her and Neji? The girl had never really considered it before. To be honest, she hadn't ever thought about herself with anyone else besides Sasuke.

Her eyes moved to look at Neji. He was rather good looking. And his calm personality was a nice change from the extreme ones that her teammates possessed. Also it was nice to go on a mission with someone who wasn't staring a book the entire time or talking about a 'cool new jutsu' that they couldn't wait to use in a fight.

But did she think of him in 'that way'? She didn't think so…

Sakura sighed as she sat on her bed. It had been three months since that mission and a lot had happened to her emotionally since then.

She and Neji had been placed on quite a few missions together. Apparently Tsunade thought that they worked together well or something like that. During that time they had gotten to know each other a lot better.

Ever since they began to go on missions together, she had discovered things about him. For instance, he seemed to almost have a love/hate relationship with his clan. His sense of humor was very limited, and he didn't let it show very often. He was stubborn when it came to his own health; often times she would have to force him to let her heal him when he was injured instead of just 'sleeping it off'. She also noticed physical things, such as how he was much more muscular than his loose clothing let on, and how handsome he looked when his hair was blowing in the wind.

Her thoughts of the boy had changed drastically since that old man's comment. She had begun to picture Neji and her as a couple, holding hands and even kissing. One time she even went as far as to imagine what their children could look like.

She had begun to enjoy their encounters more and more. Her heart would sometimes flutter when they talked, and she always had a smile when he complimented her.

Yes, it was pretty obvious to her that she now thought of him in 'that way'.

What was frustrating was how Neji was acting lately. He gave signs that he felt the same way as her. She often caught him staring at her. When they reached for the same object and their hands touched he would wait a second longer than what was deemed appropriate to retract his hand. And she swore that on two instances he looked like he was about to kiss her.

But every time he did something that was even slightly romantic, he would pull back and act like it had never happened; sometimes going as far as to shun her. Both times he seemed to want to kiss her, he immediately recoiled and gave her the cold shoulder for an hour for no apparent reason.

She didn't know what to make of it. Was he into her or not? And if he was, why was he acting like this? Why couldn't she just fall for guys who clearly liked her back?

What could she do about this? Well, she could confront him about it. But that could make things really awkward between them afterwards. Was she willing to risk that? It was either that or stay confused for who knows how long.

Yes, she was willing to risk it. She sat up on her bed with new determination. Next time he pulled away, she was going to confront him about it, consequences be damned. At least if he turned her down she'd have closure.

_This was it, _Sakura told herself. Neji and her had just completed a mission and were in the middle of exchanging goodbyes when he looked at her almost with a sense of longing before turning away. She had promised herself that she would confront him next time he did this, and now was the time.

She felt really nervous, which was strange to her. The girl never experienced difficulty declaring her adoration for Sasuke, this shouldn't be different. But now she found herself thinking up excuses to back out. Maybe never knowing how he felt wouldn't be too bad. Perhaps she could try it next time instead.

No! She had to ask this time. If she backed down now, then it was probable that she would do so every time afterwards. She could do this.

Before she could stop herself, Sakura blurted out, "Why do you do that?"

Neji turned around and looked at her with a raised eyebrow, "Do what?"

No backing out now. "You act like…you're attracted to me, and then you suddenly stop. Like you've changed your mind or you're mad at me or something." He didn't respond. Ok, maybe he didn't like her that way. Initiate back up plan! Wait, she didn't have a back-up plan. How was she going to get out of this? She took a step back, "Or maybe you don't. Sorry for bringing it up."

Just as she was going to walk away, he spoke, "You're correct."

She immediately looked back at him. "I am?"

"I do feel attracted to you," he responded calmly.

He did? Yes! Before he could add to what he said, she cut in, "Really? That's great because I feel the same way-"

"But I'm not going to pursue my affections," he finished.

He wasn't? "You're-you're not?" Sakura asked with confusion evident in her tone. He nodded. "Why?"

There was no remorse in his voice or eyes when he stated, "I do not wish to have a relationship with you because I do not wish to simply be a stand-in for Sasuke."

"A…what?"

"You have made your adoration for him clear in our adolescence. I am not going to be with you just to have you run off to Sasuke as soon as he returns." Without waiting for a response, he turned and walked off, leaving Sakura to stand gawking at the spot where he had stood.

He did have feelings for her. But he didn't want to act on them because…of her feelings for Sasuke?

She supposed that it made sense, given how obsessed she was for him when Sasuke was still in the village. That didn't make it easy to deal with.

Contrary to popular belief, Sakura knew that her past adoration for the Uchiha was foolish. Sakura knew now that the most she could ever hope to receive from him was friendship, knocking her out on that bench proved that much. And yet, she had still pursued him in an attempt to be the one person he let in. To be the one person he trusted and loved. But it never happened, and her feelings had been for naught. Despite having the intelligence that she treasured, she had been incredibly stupid.

Looking back, it would have been better for her if her feelings for him had never appeared. It would have saved her a lot of heartbreak. And then maybe she would be in a relationship with Neji now.

What were her feelings for Sasuke like now? If he did come back, would she do as Neji said and run into his arms? Did she still care about him like she used to?

She didn't think that she did, she had grown up, and her feelings had changed.

Her feelings for Neji were different. When she had cared for Sasuke, she was incredibly naive. She was a preteen girl with a crush that had escalated into an obsession. She had fallen for Sasuke almost instantly, and had only gotten to know him afterwards. With Neji, it was the opposite. She had only begun to care about him after learning about who he truly was.

He was a person with a harsh past, and he used to let that control him. But, after the chuunin exams, that had changed. He stopped letting his past control his future. He was a man who cared deeply for members of his clan and for his teammates, even if he sometimes had difficulty showing it. He was someone fought for what he believed in. He was polite, reserved, calm, and a great leader. He was someone that she loved.

She had never cared for anyone the way that she cared for him. He made her feel happy and content in a way that no one else could, not even Sasuke.

And she didn't want to lose him.

Without a second thought, she ran in the direction that he left in.

She caught up to him when he was nearing the Hyuuga compound. "Neji," she called out.

He turned around and looked at her. "Yes?"

Sakura stopped when she was in front of him. "I'd stay with you. If Sasuke came back here, I wouldn't even attempt to be with him. I know how I acted when I was younger, and I don't feel that way anymore. You're the one I want to be with. The only one I want to be with."

She had never felt as scared as she did when she stopped and Neji paused. Was he going to reject her? A sickening feeling formed in her stomach. Was he not convinced? Or did he decide on his walk that actually didn't want to be with her?

Neji smirked at her. "All I really needed to hear from you was the first sentence, not the full confession." He stepped closer to her and moved some pink stray hairs from her face.

She squished down the feelings of relief. She didn't want to celebrate just yet in case she was turned down. "And…that means?"

His smirk morphed into a genuine smile. "It means that I'll, as most people put it, 'go out with you'." His smirk returned. "So you can stop looking like a terrified Doe now."

* * *

"And that was how it happened," Sakura finished.

"Wow," Ino replied with a glazed look in her eyes. "That's so romantic!"

The pinkette laughed, "I suppose it is. Now, are you going to ask out Sai?"

Ino thought about it for a moment before nodding. "I think I'm going to. After all, if you did it, then it can't be that hard to do."

Sakura was about to retort when Neji came in. "Hello," he greeted them before looking at Sakura. "Ready?"

She nodded. "Almost, I just need to put away some papers." She looked down and began to put her paperwork into the drawers of her desk.

"Have fun on your date!" Ino called out as she left the office.

Sakura smiled when she shut the drawers. "Finished." She walked up to him and they exited the office.

"You fantasied about what our children would look like?" Neji asked as Sakura locked her door.

The pinkette felt blood rush to her cheeks. "You heard that?" Neji nodded. Well…that was kind of embarrassing. "How much did you hear?" She asked nervously. There was nothing that he really 'shouldn't' have heard, but the thought that he heard her 'confession' did make her feel a little awkward. They usually didn't talk about things like that. Once they established that they both cared for each other they didn't really talk about it much.

"All of it," he replied when Sakura looked up at him and they continued to walk. "I was going to enter, but I didn't want to interrupt your little 'heart to heart'."

"Great…" She grimaced. Hopefully he would just drop the subject.

"So you began to think of me romantically after that mission with the old man?" He continued.

Apparently he wasn't dropping it. "Mhmm," she told him. "Wasn't that when both of us started?"

"No," he told her, glancing over to her.

"Really?" She asked as they left the building, grateful that the focus wasn't on her anymore.

"Yes."

"Before or after me?" She asked, now a little curious.

"Before," he informed her.

Really? He sure did a good job of hiding it. "It was at our second chuunin exams," he told her. "During your match with that Sand nin."

"Then?" The pinkette asked incredulously. She didn't see anything about that match that would make him attracted to her.

"Yes," He looked at her again. "You surprised me. Until then I thought that you were a weak kunoichi who was too busy fantasizing about her teammate to take being a ninja seriously." Before she could snap at him, he continued. "Considering how strong that Sand nin was, I had expected you to lose quite quickly. However, even though they were clearly stronger in ninjustu than you, you had not only managed to hold your ground, but you also won the match. That made me look at you differently and reevaluate my opinion of you."

Hmm. Considering how seriously he took training and being a ninja in general, she guessed that made sense. She wasn't really fond of his opinion of her before that, but at least he was honest about it. His honesty was one of the things she liked about him. He wouldn't really be Neji without it.

"So what did you decide that our children would look like?"

She grimaced again. "You're not going to drop that are you?"

"Not a chance."


	3. Sleep

It took everything Sakura had to not burst out laughing at her boyfriend.

They were on a mission together along with Kiba and Shikamaru. The group was to go rescue a genin that had been captured by a group of rogue nins on the outskirts of the country. They were currently on their way to the destination.

Since it was getting dark and they still had a long journey ahead of them, the group had decided to stop traveling and rest. All of them had retrieved their sleeping bags from their packs; at least, all of them except for Neji.

Sakura guessed that he had thought he had packed it but had gotten caught up in something else. Come to think of it, she had heard a thump while she and Neji had been making out, maybe that had been the sleeping bag falling out of his pack?

No matter what the reason, Neji was without a means to sleep. But that wasn't what Sakura found funny,

What she thought was amusing was his reaction when he had looked in his pack and discovered what wasn't inside it.

To say that her boyfriend was a bit of a perfectionist was an understatement. He planned out everything, never doing anything 'out of the blue'. He also prided himself on 'being prepared for anything'. Hence why was she had to bite her bottom lip to stop a giggle from escaping when his eyes widened and he emptied out his pack.

If an outsider saw him right now, they would think that he was calm and composed. But she knew him rather intimately and could tell by the slight tensing of his muscles that he was, for lack of a better descriptor, freaking out on the inside. She bet her favourite top that right now he was racking his head, trying to think of just how this could have happened and that next time, he was going to do quadruple check his bag before setting out on a mission. It was kind of cute actually.

The pinkette decided to try and relieve her lover from his misery. She walked over to him and knelt down beside him. "Do you want to share mine?"

He looked over at her and she saw that he was considering her offer. The medic wasn't offended that he didn't automatically say yes. One thing that he had always insisted on was that they maintained a professional conduct while on missions. That meant no kissing, no intimate embraces, and no names of endearment (not that they really used those at all in the first place). She didn't really blame him for that; it was just a part of who he was. He also liked to limit the amount of friendly conversations that he had during missions as well.

Just as she thought that he was going to say no and she was going to say that she understood, he nodded and said, "Alright."

She smiled at him and they both walked towards her sleeping bag. Kiba's eyes lit up in surprise and amusement at the pair. Even Shikamaru appeared interested, but he was much more subtle about it, choosing to peer at the couple from the corner of his eyes. The dog boy was about to comment, but Neji cut him off with a warning look.

Sakura had to admit that she felt a tad nervous. She and Neji had never shared a bed together before. They were taking their relationship rather slowly. Heck, they didn't kiss until after the third week of being together. This was fine with both of them, neither one wanted to rush the relationship.

The pinkette went into the sleeping bag first and he slipped in after her. She was unsure if they should cuddle or not, but he answered her question by attempting to put as much space between them as possible, which was hard to accomplish considering that there was very little wiggle room to begin with. She knew not to let it get to her, knowing that that was part of his 'professionalism on missions' idea.

"Good night," she murmured as she shut her eyes. Fortunately she didn't have to take watch until the day after, so she could just sleep.

"Good night," he returned softly. She fell asleep immediately after.

* * *

"Hey, wake up you two," Kiba's loud voice called. The first thing the girl noticed when she awoke was that she and Neji were not in the positions that they slept in. Their arms were around each other and were so close that their noses were touching.

She paused and looked around. It was light outside, already past dawn. Wait, wasn't Neji supposed to take the last watch? That means…he had slept in, by a lot.

Neji's eyes opened and immediately looked at their position, and then at the sky. As soon as he realised what she had found out, he shot up of the sleeping bag, a scowl set on his face.

"Guess you guys got a little too comfy eh?" Kiba chuckled.

Neji glared and began to bark out orders. "Get ready, we leave in five minutes." He then walked off without a second glance at Sakura.

The Hyuuga's mood did not seem to improve over the course of the mission. While he ensured that the mission was a success, the pinkette could tell that he was brooding for much of the time. He nearly snapped at her when she asked if they wanted to share the sleeping bag again.

For the sake of the mission, and because she didn't want to have the confrontation in front of Kiba, Shikamaru and the genin they saved, she refrained from talking about it until after they reported to Tsunade.

Before heading out on them mission, she had originally planned to ask Neji if they wanted to go out for lunch together afterwards. Judging by how he had walked away from back to Hyuuga estate, she knew the offer was off the table. But that didn't mean that she was going to let him off the hook just yet.

"Neji," she called out to him, a determined expression set on her face.

He looked over at her and sighed, "We'll talk somewhere private."

They ended up going to a deserted training ground. Once the pair had made sure that they were alone, Sakura crossed her arms and said, "Alright, out with it. What was wrong with you back there?"

He shut his eyes, as if trying to decide on what to say. "When we slept together, I don't know why, but I was so comfortable or…something that I slept through the time when I should have been taking watch. I didn't awaken until Kiba was practically yelling at us."

She wanted to point out that Kiba wasn't exactly yelling, but she doubted that that would calm him down any. She felt bad, he actually looked rather embarrassed.

"I was so out of it," he continued, "A missing nin could have walked in and slaughtered all of us and we wouldn't have done a thing because we would have slept through the entire thing! Sakura, we can never do that on a mission again."

"Ok," She started. "I see why you're upset, by why are you taking it out on me?"

"I'm not-"He started.

"You ignored me for the rest of the mission," Sakura accused. "The only time you acknowledged me was when you had to, and even then you glared at me when you did it."

He appeared as if he was going to refute her claims, but then paused and murmured, "I suppose I did." Neji ran a hand through his hair. "I wanted someone to take my anger at myself out on, and I took it out on you. I apologize."

She smiled. "It's ok." She reached out her hand. "Now, do you want to go for lunch with me?"

He shook his head. "I have a clan meeting."

"Oh, alright. See you later then," She responded.

He nodded and took off.

* * *

Five days later

* * *

Sakura yawned as she settled down for bed. It had been a long day in the hospital and she was looking forward to getting some shut eye.

She was just about to climb into her bed when a sound at her window made her stop and turn around. Neji was standing on her window sill. What was he doing here?

The pinkette walked over to her window and opened it, allowing her boyfriend to walk through. "Hey," she greeted him.

"Hello," he said nervously. Wait, nervously? Since when was he nervous about anything? "I want to ask you something."

"Ok," she replied, wondering what exactly was making him so nervous.

"I haven't been getting a lot of sleep lately and I need to be well rested for the mission I'm going on tomorrow," he explained quickly. "And I remember that when we slept together, even though it made me sleep in, I was really well rested after it so…"

She realised what he was asking and couldn't help but the stupid grin on her face. So sleeping with her wasn't such a bad thing now was it? Judging by how he had trailed off, he was expecting her to comprehend what he was asking and answer him. Oh, she knew what he was asking alright, but she was still going to get him to ask it.

Sakura crossed her arms, and with the grin still present on her face, asked, "So…?"

Neji glared. "You know what I'm asking."

She shook her head. "No, actually I have no idea. You're going to have to be more specific."

He gave a sound of frustration and mumbled something about how impossible she was being before saying, "May I sleep in the same bed as you tonight?"

She smiled. "That wasn't so hard now was it? And yes, you may."

He offered a small smile of gratitude. "Thank you."

The two climbed into the bed together. Unlike the other time, she actually snuggled into him. "I'll be gone early if you wish," he told her. "I don't know what you're planning on doing tomorrow, but if you need me to be gone-"

"Neji," she spoke up. He paused. "Goodnight."

He sighed and wrapped his arms around her middle. "Good night."

And they both fell asleep.

* * *

**Hey everyone, I hope you enjoyed the fic. I apologize if it seemed rushed. I wanted to flush it out more, but couldn't as I have schoolwork and am working on the next chapter of Revelation. Any and all reviews are appreciated :) **


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